Pages

Wednesday, August 6, 2014

My PitchWars Mentee Bio

If you're into this kind of thing, I thought I'd take a break from all of this "writing" and "reading" and "reviewing" and "pretending to be working when I'm really just jamming out to the Wish I Was Here soundtrack" and put together a little mentee bio for PitchWars. A few other fabulous mentees were doing so, and I thought I'd jump onto that bandwagon.

Now, let's talk about me. Using only GIFs and images from the movie Airplane! Because if you don't like Airplane!, we can't be friends.

I am serious, and don't call me Shirley.

Anyway, I guess I will go through the basics to begin with. My name is Justine Winans, and I am a seventeen year old writer in the grand state of Ohio. Unfortunately, my lack of age and worldly experience means that I'm a little bit behind when it comes to knowing about the publishing side of everything. However, it also means that I'm pretty in tune with my genre (which is YA) considering that I am a...YA.

I also do reviews for Young Adult (mostly) novels on this here blog, which is a whole lot of fun. I love Young Adult Fiction to the point of obsession, and that really helps me as a writer. Not so much on the monetary stance. (Recently reached 100 books according to my Goodreads count. *toasts*)

This is my first year getting involved in PitchWars, and I'm very excited, if not also a bit terrified.

But, let me talk a little bit about my writing.

I love YA Contemporary. I'm sure that one day I'll try to write something that isn't YA Contemporary, but I've written two already, and my WIP is a third. (The second, WHERE YOU FOUND ME, is the project that I'm querying for.)

Although I love my fair share of light and funny romances and contemporary novels, that's not quite what I'm writing. Don't get me wrong, I always try to have some humor in my novels, but I'd be lying if I said they were only happy and fun the entire way through.

There's nothing wrong with having that. You lovely light and swoony writers can go on sugarcoating stories, but-

I don't have a bunch of writing credentials, although I do try to immerse myself in the writing, as well as reading, community online. Hopefully, my writing can show who I am as a writer a lot better than I can tell you.

The idea of having a mentor is pretty awesome, and not just because it would make me feel a little more like a Jedi. No, it's because it'd be nice to have someone there for you, when so many times, the whole "aspiring writer" thing has you feeling like you're on your own.

Can my manuscript use a lot of work? Yes. Yes, it can. But I'm
more than willing to put my heart and soul and K-Cup coffee maker into
it, especially if I'm given a push in the right direction. I love brutally honest critiques. Only giving compliments is like letting me walk off to an audition or date with spinach on my teeth. I'd much rather have the truth. That way I can fix it before I make a fool of myself. (Which, I am very prone to doing. I blame the whole "teenager" thing.)

Plus, it's nice to have a fresh set of eyes on your work. Let's be real, we can all be a little blind when it comes to our own work sometimes.

From personal revising experience, I know that sometimes, you just need a bit of a wake-up call.

Anyway, I'll finish this off by talking a bit about myself myself. (I can always use more writer friends, fellow mentees.) Some interesting facts.

I can be a bit long-winded. Haha. Ha.

I'm actually a theatre kid. Not musical theatre, because I'm a god-awful dancer. (Although I do love Jersey Boys like it's my job, and will belt out songs from Chicago with anyone.) I'm currently in a performing arts academy, along with my regular AP classes, where I learn all about acting and perform monologues from my guy, William Shakespeare. (I love Twelfth Night, and know Viola's monologue by heart.) I also act in some local films.

I love movies. I'm constantly quoting movies. Some of my favorites include Airplane!, The Usual Suspects, Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Silence of the Lambs, and basically all the Marvel movies. (Like, Guardians of the Galaxy was awesome.) I also dig television shows like Community, Supernatural, Hannibal and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

I also write screenplays and stageplays. Have you heard of any of them? No. Maybe someday...

I have a drinking problem.

I actually just love that joke.

I have a love of classic rock and indie rock. I will forever love Red Hot Chili Peppers, but I also will jam out to Foreigner, AC/DC, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Scorpians, Queen and The Rolling Stones. My latest album obsession is Vampire Weekend's Modern Vampires of the City. (Recommend.)

Well, I loved reading the posts of all the mentors, and I'm very excited to meet all of you fellow mentees!
If you ever want to chat, I'm often on my twitter.